The FRISK® Stress Index

Public company risk is rising fast. Benchmark risky companies by industry or country over time.

The global debt problem

Global debt is higher than it’s ever been, driven by historically low interest rates. Risky industries like retail, oil and gas, and printing and publishing make headlines daily — and are even riskier now than they were at the start of the Great Recession.

In fact, more companies are likely to fail in the 12 months of 2018 than when the Great Recession first began in late 2007. And as this benign credit cycle continues, the debt problem grows even larger.

Stay on top of this risk with the FRISK® Stress Index.

Comparing risk trends

The FRISK® Stress Index compares the probability of failure of groups of companies (such as an industry, a country or your own portfolio) from 2007 to today. It:

Provides an immediate snapshot of the financial stress of a group of companies, and compares it to the start of the Great Recession

Highlights risk in major industries and countries around the world

Shows financial stress trends and levels from 2007 to today

Each day provides a reliable, fact-based assessment of financial risk

How it works

The index is based on the same underlying methodology as our 96% accurate proprietary FRISK® score, which is calculated using crowdsourcing, current financial statements, stock market volatility, market capitalization and, when available, bond agency ratings from Fitch, Moody's, Morningstar Credit Ratings and DBRS.

The index averages FRISK® scores over time and is shown on a scale of "1" to "50." "1"means a 1% chance of business failure within 12 months, while "50" means a 50% chance. (1-2% is a typical rate.)

Using the FRISK® Stress Index

You can access the Stress Index by industry or by country, without a subscription, at no charge.

Worried about the public company risk climate in China or wondering if the coal mining industry is safer overall today than recent years? The FRISK® Stress Index can crunch data in an instant and give you a great starting point for reference when looking over your portfolio.

Search by Country

Select a country to view the overall risk level of its public companies, then drill down to the industries represented to see their risk levels.

Search by Industry

To see the risk level of public companies in a specific industry sector, select from the menu of SIC (industry) codes.

View Risk by Subsector

You can also drill into more specific industry subsectors by scrolling down and selecting "More Industries," followed by selecting "All SIC Codes," to see subsectors at the three- and four-digit levels.